Ghana: Blitz Bazawule’s debut novel set for June 2022

in a statement posted to social media on Wednesday, Bazawule described the latest feat in his multi-disciplinary artistic career as “a truly amazing way to end the year.” 

The Scent of Burnt Flowers is published by Random House imprint Ballantine Books, which acquired the project in February. It follows a black couple fleeing persecution in 1960s America and seeking asylum in Ghana after one commits a murder in self-defence.

“Steeped in the history and mythologies of West Africa, at the intersection of the civil rights movement in the United States, The Scent of Burnt Flowers merges political intrigue, magical encounters, and forbidden romance in an epic collision of love, morality, and power,” a blurb reads.

The story explores “fresh dangers and old secrets” threatening the couple’s pursuit of a new beginning, including the 1966 coup of then-president Kwame Nkrumah. The couple’s chance encounter with a beloved highlife musician headed to play for the president, sparks a journey full of suspense, lust, magic and danger as Nkrumah’s regime crumbles around them.

The author, born Samuel Bazawule, is behind multiple EPs and four full-length albums including Stereotype (2009), Native Sun (2011), Afropolitan Dreams (2014) and Diasporadical (2016). In June, Bazawule joined 2 708 individuals in the music industry including songwriters, engineers, producers and performers invited to the Grammys as voting members.

As a filmmaker, he is popular for co-directing Beyoncé’s 2020 film Black Is King. His 2018 directorial debut The Burial of Kojo is Ghana’s first Golden Globes entry. The film won the Best Narrative Feature (World Cinema) Award at HBO’s Urbanworld Film Festival, where it premiered. It also emerged tops at the 2019 Luxor African Film Festival in Egypt. 

A senior TED fellow, Bazawule is the founder of the Africa Film Society and a recipient of the Vilcek Prize. He is also set to direct the musical version of The Color Purple for Warner Bros.

The Scent of Burnt Flowers is available for pre-order here.